The field of the invention relates generally to fabrication assemblies and, more particularly, to fabrication assemblies configured to construct composite mirror objects.
At least some known visual devices, such as telescopes, include components, such as mirrors. The manufacturing of mirrors used in various devices, such as telescopes, includes the fabrication of replicated mirrors. At least some known methods and techniques used for the fabrication of replicated mirrors involves the positioning of an uncured resin between a glass mandrel, such as a high quality mandrel, and a pre-manufactured composite substrate. In some circumstances, the resin is cured and the surface of the mandrel is replicated, while being bonded to the composite surface. The resulting replica surface is coated with a reflective metal. It is rare that replicated resin surfaces are the exact same copy as the master mandrel. As such, the method requires a series of secondary polishing procedures, such as ion milling (“IM”) or a magnetorheological finish (“MRF”) polishing, to achieve relatively high optical quality surfaces. These additional procedures can be time consuming and can add significant cost. Moreover, polishing a soft resin surface can be challenging and can be complicated, especially when particle fillers are involved. In addition, these secondary processes may lead to systems with reduced stability.